"Mannetjie" wrote in message
I opened a 2003 red wine on Saturday. The nose was a bit sharp and full
bodied but still very fragrant and good to drink.
Having only 1 glass I closed he bottle up with the cork again and left it
to
stand. Last night I opened it up again and WOW what a change!
The sharpness has changed into a soft butery taste with a pronounsed oak
flaviour coming through.

Allowing a wine to breath is very important. I often open the wine a few
hours before the meal and decant it. Decanting is done to pour the wine off
of any sediment, but it also allows the wine to breath, thus the wide base
to expose a lot of surface to the air. I'm not knowledgable enough to give
you particular times for different types, but experiment and you'll be
pleased.
Ed

http://pages.cthome.net/edhome